Conjoint bottle mouth and stopper



Fan. 23. 1945. E. R. WALSH ETAL I 7,

CONJOINT BOTTLE MOUTH AND STOPPER I Filed Oct; 15, 1942 3 et w a ward firm n on? E C1 77mm? mrwoh/ 9 I CIttornegs:

Patented Jan. 23, 1945 UNITED STATES rATENT orncr.

- CONJOINT BOTTLE MOUTH AND STOPPER Edward R. Walsh and HarryC. Ward, Louisville, Ky., assignors to' Frankfort Distilleries, Incorporated, Louisville, Ky., a corporation of'West x Virginia Application October 15, 1942, Serial No. 462,176

3 Claims.

over the prior application of Edward R. Walsh.

and Harry C. Ward for Bottle closures, Serial No. 446,790, filed June 12,1942.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be more fully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawing, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the sev eral views,

Figure l is a fragmentary perspective view, with parts bro-ken away and parts shown in section, of an improved bottle neck and stopper constructed in accordance with the present invention and with the stopper separated from the bottle neck.

Figure 2 is a similar View with the stopper in an initial position, and

Figure 3 shows the stopper in its final position.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, 5 represents a whiskey or other bottle having a neck '6 in which is formed a tapering or flaring wall section I having its smallest diameter at the top or mouth 8 of the bottle. Such wall section 1 flares downwardly to its largest diameter at the base 9 where there may be formed a shoulder Hi. In other words the wall section 'I flares downwardly and tapers upwardly. This mold in the bottle neck is what we characterize as a brandy finish. Otherwise stated the wall section 'I is formed on the frusturm of a cone the upper portion of which is truncated.

Cooperating with the bottle neck is a stopper or closure comprising a head H and a shank cylindrical shell.

section 1 of the bottle neck, such shank is interiorly cored out or made hollow, as indicated at M which constitutes the shank l2 a generally In efiect it constitutes'a shell, cork or stopper. The internal diameter of the bore l4 may be uniform from top to bottom. The external diameter of the shell is not tapered but truly cylindrical; that is externally the walls of the shell l2 are perfectly straightup and down and slightly larger in diameter than the diameter across the bottle mouth 8.

In use, the stopper or cork is simply inserted in the bottle mouth opening and pushed home. In introducing the shell to the bottle opening due to the differences in diameter, the shell will be constricted and compressed by the wall at 8. As the shell is pushed into the bottle all that portion of the shell l2 below the constriction 8 will tend to flare outwardly, as indicated in Figure 3. In other words, the constriction at the top of the bottle opening forms the joint, and

I2. A shoulder 13 is provided between the parts l l and 12 b reason of differential diameters and this shoulder will take against the mouth or lip of the bottle neck 6. The parts H, l2 may be made integral and of wood or some other material possessing elasticity to adegree but less than rubber or cork. In order to give the wood the essential compressibility or elasticity, particularly in the shank 12 which fits into the wall the skirt l2 of the shell spreads outwardly in a dove-tail form. The shell is not necessarily tight below the joint at 8. It does flare, however, to a larger size than the immediate opening 8 which causes it to become tighter, if forced from its initial position by pressure inside the bottle.

A wood shell has been made with a diameter of .691 inch in comparison to a bottle mouth opening of .660 inch. The compressibility of the shell and the effective sealing of the bottle was successfully demonstrated.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof, such changes and modifications being restricted only by thescope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A conjoint-bottle neck and stopper comprising a normally cylindrical stopper shank of compressible and expansible material, and a bottle neckwall of irusto-conical form larger in diameter than said normally-cylindrical shank throughout its major area, said neck wall having a mouth opening of smaller diameter than the normallycylindrical shank to constrict the compressible and expansible material of the shank across the mouth opening and expand such material into the norm-ally larger portion of the neck wall.

-2.. In combination with a container wall of frusto-conical shape having a mouth opening toward which said wall tapers, of a stopper having a hollow shank of a compressible and expansible material, said shank normall substantially cylindrical and of a substantially uniform external diameter from end to end, said external diameter normally exceeding the diameter of the container wall across said mouth opening but inferior to the diameter of the frusto-conical wall at all portions inward of said mouth opening whereby the relatively narrow mouth opening wall constricts the material of the stopper shank at the mouth opening causing consequent expansion of the shank material at all other points against the relatively larger frusto-conical wall.

3. In combination, a container having a neck with a passage therethrough and a mouth opening at the outer-end of the passage, said passage having a wall being in the uninterrupted frustum of a. cone and tapering gradually and only on the true cone surface all the way to the mouth opening which is the smallest diameter of the cone and the point at which said cone is truncated, and a stopper comprising a head and hollow shank of wvood of a limited compressible and expansible nature, said shank normally substantially cylindrical with a uniform diameter greater than that of the mouth opening but less than that of the remainder of the passage, said neck opening adapted to constrict the material of the shank adjacent the head to cause expansion of the shank inwardly of the mouth opening against the conical wall of the passage, said hollow shank having its inner end open.

EDWARD R. WALSH.

HARRY C. WARD. 

